This application claims the priority of German patent application No. 101 59 353.8, filed on Dec. 4, 2001 with the German Patent and Trademark Office, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
For administering a dose or doses of insulin, hormone or the like, so-called injection pens are known from the prior art. In some such pens a cannula support is removably attached to the pen. After a dose has been administered one or more times, the cannula support is removed from the injection pen and disposed of. In order to prevent unintentional needle pricking injuries, a needle cover is required which reliably covers the proximal, i.e., front, end of the injection needle.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a cannula support having a needle covering function, which can be operated simply and reliably and which can be manufactured cost-effectively. Another object is to provide a packaging structure for suitably storing such a cannula support.
These and other objects are solved by a cannula support having a needle covering function, and by a packaging structure for such a cannula support.
In one embodiment, the present invention comprises a cannula support for connection to an injection or infusion device comprising a cannula, the cannula support comprising a receptacle for the cannula and at least two pivoting side portions which project from the receptacle and which may be pivoted towards each other, forming a needle cover covering a proximal end of the cannula. In one embodiment, the present invention encompasses a packaging structure for a cannula support comprising a receptacle having two relatively pivoting side portions each having an end including a connecting element, the packaging structure comprising a tapered truncated packaging body having side walls, a seal for sealing the body, and an accommodating element, wherein when the cannula support is in the packaging structure, the pivoting side portions abut the side walls such that the pivoting side portions are pivoted toward each other and the accommodating element prevents the connecting elements from being connected.
In one embodiment, the present invention comprises a cannula support having a needle covering function, which may be connected to an injection or infusion device and forms a receptacle for a cannula, including at least two pivoting side portions which project from said receptacle which may be pivoted towards each other, to form a needle cover covering a proximal end of said cannula. The invention also encompasses a packaging structure for storing and transporting the cannula support.
In one embodiment, a cannula support in accordance with the invention has at least two pivoting side portions which project from a receptacle for a cannula and which may be pivoted towards each other to form a needle cover, in order to cover a proximal end of a cannula. In order to form the needle cover, the user grips the circumferential ends of the pivoting side portions with his/her fingers or a special tool and pivots them towards each other. Because for this purpose, the user has to grip the upper sides of the pivoting side portions which represent the outer side of the needle cover as the side portions are pivoted towards each other, the proximal end of the cannula is always covered by the side portions, such that the danger of an unintentional pricking injury is effectively reduced. The danger of unintentional pricking injuries is additionally reduced by the fact that the pivoting movement represents a movement which is directed generally away from the proximal end of the cannula.
By forming the cannula support in accordance with the present invention, legal conditions, working regulations and the like can also be effectively kept; such regulations increasingly prohibit the attachment of a separate cylindrical protective sleeve to the injection needle to cover it.
The form of a cannula support in accordance with the invention is advantageously simple, such that it can be manufactured cost-effectively and operated simply and reliably. In particular, the cannula support can be designed to be disposable, in which case the cannula support is removed from the injection or infusion device and disposed of after the needle cover has been formed. Providing the needle cover is formed by pivoting together the pivoting side portions, however, the cannula support can also be used repeatedly.
In one embodiment, the pivoting side portions project radially outwards from the cannula receptacle, point-symmetrically with respect to a longitudinal axis of the cannula. In this way, the pivoting movement of the side portions is symmetrically guided, such that front circumferential ends automatically come to abut each other near the longitudinal axis of the cannula support.
In order to form a needle cover, the pivoting side portions comprise connecting elements which connect the side portions to each other when the needle cover is formed, such that said connection can only be released with difficulty or, in some embodiments, not at all. The connecting elements may be arranged at the circumferential end of each of the pivoting side portions. Alternatively, the connecting elements can be arranged on the side portions at a suitable position, for example, in the form of spring-elastic latches which project from a facing side of a side portion, and in a folded-together needle protecting position grips behind an outer edge of an opposing side portion.
In some embodiments, the circumferential ends of the pivoting side portions each comprise a protrusion which projects substantially perpendicularly from the side portion such that, when the side portions are pivoted together, the protrusions form a covering area for covering the tip of the needle, wherein the covering area is orientated substantially parallel to the upper rim of the cannula support. The width of the protrusions substantially corresponds to the width of the side portions and is dimensioned such that the tip of the needle is sufficiently covered to reliably rule out an unintentional needle pricking injury.
The length of the protrusion can in each case substantially correspond to the outer radius of the cannula support. In this case, the needle cover would exhibit an overall rectangular profile in its folded-together needle protecting position.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment, the length of the protrusions is smaller than the maximum outer radius of the cannula support such that, when the side portions are pivoted together such that the distances between the side areas substantially correspond to the outer radius of the cannula support, the connecting elements do not yet co-operate to latch the needle protecting position. An advantage of this embodiment is that the cannula support comprising the needle cover can be stored in a folded-together transport position in which the maximum outer dimensions of a packaging structure substantially correspond only to the maximum outer dimensions of the cannula support.
In this preferred embodiment, the needle cover exhibits a substantially trapezoid profile in its folded-together needle protecting position, said profile being due to a kink in the side portions, substantially at the level of a base of the cannula support.
Preferably, the side portions are elastically connected to the cannula support, such that a restoring force acts which unfolds the side portions into a standard position in which the side portions project substantially radially outwards, perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cannula support. This is advantageous since, when the cannula support is removed from a packaging structure, the side portions do not have to be guided back by hand before the injection needle is injected into the tissue.
Other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will be identified and understood with reference to the following description, the accompanying drawings and the expanded claims.